4th of July shark attacks wound 4 in Texas, Florida

By Serdar Dincel

ISTANBUL (AA) - A shark bit three people off beach in the southern US state of Texas on July 4, the US Independence Day, with another person also being bitten by a shark in the southern Florida state on the same day, according to officials.

In Texas, three people were bitten off the city of South Padre Island, located on a barrier island near Brownsville. The shark was later found and "pushed out to deeper water," according to the city's Fire Chief Jim Pigg, NBC News reported.

"It's unprecedented here on South Padre Island," Pigg said. He added that there were two shark bite incidents at different times and locations on Thursday.

Police responded to a 911 call reporting "a severe shark bite to the leg" at 11 a.m. (1600GMT), according to the city secretary, Nikki Soto. The victim was taken to a local hospital.

Pigg reported that the first 911 call involved one person with a bite injury and another with minor injuries who did not require further emergency care.

Following a second 911 call about a shark attack, firefighters found two individuals who had been bitten by a shark, Pigg said. They were also taken to a hospital.

Kyle Jud, 46, said he witnessed a woman pulled from the water who appeared to have a bite on her leg.

"Beach patrol lifted her up — her calf was just gone, shredded. Horrific," Jud described.

According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, one of the victims was airlifted from a Brownsville hospital for further treatment.

Pigg stated that the type of shark involved has not yet been determined and that an investigation is ongoing.

A 21-year-old man was also bitten in New Smyrna Beach in Florida by a shark while playing football in knee-deep water around 4 p.m. (2000GMT), according to Tamra Malphurs, the interim director of Volusia County Beach Safety.

The man, visiting the city on the Atlantic coast from Ohio, was taken to a hospital, and his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening, Malphurs noted.

The Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, in its latest annual report, reported 36 unprovoked shark attacks in the US last year, with two fatalities. The project notes that shark attack risk is relatively pretty low but can be reduced further by swimming in groups and staying close to shore.